Migration crisis on the border with Belarus. Via istockphoto.
Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine has resulted in more than two million people fleeing the country into Poland and other neighbouring countries including Hungary, Bulgaria and Romania. The European Union has estimated that up to four million people may try to leave Ukraine due to the invasion and according to European Commission President, Ursula von der Leye “everyone who has to flee Putin’s bombs will be welcomed with open arms”. The frightening ongoing invasion is believed to be the biggest attack on a European state since World War II and has prompted Western countries to impose a number of unprecedented sanctions on Russia to de-escalate what German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has called “Putin’s War”.
The invasion continues to be reported on by a number of major media outlets such as the BBC and Al Jazeera, who have provided commentary on the plight of refugees fleeing Ukraine. Yet, people on social media were quick to point out the xenophobic tone from correspondents such as Charlie D’Agata from CBS News who stated the following on air:
"This isn't a place, with all due respect, you know, like Iraq or Afghanistan that has seen conflict raging for decades…”
A similar comment was made by David Sakvarelidze, Ukraine’s Deputy Chief Prosecutor who said to the BBC:
"It's really emotional for me because I see European people with blue eyes and blonde hair being killed…”
The current media narrative echoes the sentiments expressed by European political leaders who have described the Ukrainian refugees as “intelligent” and “civilised” - unlike past refugee waves with ‘unclear pasts’. The thoughtless comments made about refugees from other parts of the world has made me and many others uncomfortable, but the reality is that we are living in a world where war and the loss of life has become disturbingly normalised in non-Western countries. More importantly, it is the brutalisation of Black and brown bodies which is unfortunately so callously depicted in the media that makes instances of conflict and chaos both normal and expected.
“There are these justifications that somehow war and violence are endemic to the Middle East in ways that they are not to Europe…”
As consumers of daily news, we are bombarded with statistics almost every day about civilians in countries like Syria and Iraq who have been displaced due to war, civil unrest, and terrorism. As a consequence, the international media representation of conflict in the Middle East is seemingly never-ending. Tragedy is expected and we are so desensitised to violence on Black and brown bodies that our motivation to care for and empathise with those on the other side of the globe is only sparked when we witness harrowing images like that of three-year-old Alan Kurdi. The image of his lifeless body washed up ashore in Bodrum, Turkey was described as a ‘wake-up call’ and almost functioned as a symbol of the Syrian refugee crisis, representing the hundreds of thousands of lives lost in the four years since the crisis first began in 2011. Will the world need a ‘wake-up call’ for the Ukrainian refugee crisis? I really hope not and I honestly don’t think so.
Politicians in Europe have expressed their open-arms approach to Ukrainian refugees, with neighbouring countries opening their borders to those fleeing the country. In Poland and other countries bordering Ukraine, refugees are able to stay in reception centres if they don’t have friends or family and are provided food and medical care. Countries like Hungary and Romania are supplying refugees with cash allowances for food and clothing and the Czech Republic have activated its “Migration Wave Preparedness Plan'', assisting refugees with their visas if they have to remain in the country.
“These are not the refugees we are used to. These people are Europeans…these people are intelligent, they are educated people... This is not the refugee wave we have been used to, people we were not sure about their identity, people with unclear pasts, who could have been even terrorists.”
While I hope that this open-arms approach continues for everyone affected by the ongoing crisis, reports have unfortunately emerged of residents in Ukraine from countries in Africa and the Middle East who have gotten stuck at borders and have been kept from boarding trains out of the country to make space for Ukranians. These reports, mainly from international students, have shone an alarming spotlight on the racial discrimination non-Ukrainians have faced during the chaos of fleeing. Rachel Onyegbule, a first-year medical student from Nigeria, told CNN that she and other foreigners were ordered off a bus and told to stand aside as the bus drove off with only Ukrainian nationals on board. There have also been allegations of violence from guards at the border, discriminating against Indians like Saakshi Ijantkar from Mumbai who told CNN that “they were very racist to Indians and other nationalities”.
"They are depriving the foreigners. They are being very racist with us at the border. They tell us that Ukrainian citizens have to pass first while telling foreigners to stay back…it's very difficult at the moment for Nigerians and other foreigners to cross. The Ukrainian officials are allowing more Ukrainians to cross into Poland. For instance, around 200 to 300 Ukrainians can cross, and then only 10 foreigners or 5 will be allowed to cross…”
Unsurprisingly, this tangible racism and lack of support faced by non-Ukrainians at the border echoes the xenophobic views expressed by the same politicians who refused to let refugees from the Middle East and Africa enter Europe last year. In addition to showing the same empathy and remorse to all the people fleeing the war, it is a crucial time to critically analyse the narratives we tell about refugees and think about the language used by major news organisations and politicians alike.
My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone who has been impacted by the ongoing crisis. For information on how to help Ukraine, the New York Times has shortlisted four aid organisations which they believe are especially noteworthy. If you do decide to donate, people specify that your donation goes towards the conflict in Ukraine.
You can also find my article on FourthFloor here.
Fourth Floor is a West London based collective dissecting the world and promoting young creatives across the globe